The next time your kid lodges a piece of Lego or a peanut up his nose, try giving him a “mother’s kiss.”

A new study published on Oct. 15 in the Canadian Medical Association Journal calls the technique — in which an adult dislodges an object in the nasal passage with a hard blow — safe, effective and a good first course of action.

The execution is easy: the mother, or other trusted adult, places her mouth over the child’s open mouth and forms a seal, while blocking the unaffected nostril with a finger. The adult blows until there is resistance, then gives a sharp puff of air. If successful, the foreign body is discharged. It can be repeated many times.

“It’s a very simple and potentially effective technique that can potentially prevent very young children from general anesthesia to remove a foreign object, “ says Dr. Stephanie Cook, one of the study’s authors.

It’s a common rite of passage for toddlers to stuff anything up their nose that fits, from food to toys and beyond. Extraction is often done in the doctor’s office or emergency room with forceps, suction or, in extreme cases, under general anesthesia.

The method has been around since the 1960s, but is not widely used, Cook says. It can help prevent the need for more invasive — and scary — measures, particularly in the youngest children.

Researchers from the United Kingdom and Australia reviewed all relevant studies, of which there were 22. They then narrowed them down by relevance to eight studies to determine whether the technique was effective. They found it to work 60 per cent of the time, with no adverse events reported.

Two of the studies examined stated that smooth, fully-obstructing objects are more likely to be propelled out than irregularly shaped objects that permit air to pass.

“You basically lose nothing by trying it,” Cook says. “It’s the sort of thing that can be talked through, even on the telephone as well.”

And it’s well-tolerated, as the child is just getting a “big kiss” from someone trusted, she adds.

The study suggests that the “mother’s kiss” should be tried before any other intervention. With such evidence to support the efficacy, parents, babysitters, caregivers and front-line health-care professionals should be aware of the technique, Cook says.

“You never know what children are going to put up their nose next,” she says.